


A Midsummer Night's Curse

by Piehead



Category: Check Please! (Webcomic)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Historical, Alternate Universe - Witchcraft, Angst, Fastest Slowburn you've ever seen, Fluff, Gen, M/M, Risking it all for your sibling, Romance, Witch Chowder, Witch Curses, Witch Nursey, Witches
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-09-10
Updated: 2017-11-25
Packaged: 2018-12-25 22:24:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 10,537
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12045540
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Piehead/pseuds/Piehead
Summary: Justin's sister is cursed to die when she turns seventeen. But a brother's love is strong and he is determined to save her, leaving him to embark on a quest to do so. He's searching for the person who can break the curse not only for his sister but for his town as well.The Witch Nurse is the only one that can save Justin's sister and that is who he seeks out. In the process, he finds much more than he bargained for.A fairytale story of a love truer than any romance; the love between brother and sister. There's time for romance along the way, though.





	1. The Witch's Curse

**Author's Note:**

> So! This was supposed to be my Big Bang contribution but I dropped out but I still wanna post it. So I'm posting it anyway.
> 
> A big thanks to oluranurse over on tumblr for betaing for me! Lord knows i wouldn't do it myself.

Everyone in their village knew the Witch’s Curse. It had taken one person every seventeen years for the last three centuries, and was almost routine-like in the way it came about. It was always the same. A girl, born to a kind man and woman, would be chosen. Marked at birth by the Witch’s Curse, destined to be taken, doomed to die. It was old magic, some of the oldest in the land, and it snatched away lives as easily as a bird would a fly for a meal.

It seemed avoidable, in the beginning days of it, when it was first starting to take lives. There was no one that didn’t know how the story began; the tale of the kind young maiden stolen from her own mother by an evil King, who was then cursed to die by her mother. If she could not have her daughter then no one would, and on the night of her daughter’s wedding, the evening of her seventeenth birthday, the wind blew through and she fell dead.

The king had been outraged, but the curse was placed. Every kind young woman thereafter would be taken, until the Witch was satisfied. Three hundred years and she still took, long after her death in the gallows, long after the kingdom’s death, long after the small town had settled. So long after, and the Witch still cackled in the moonlight;

_ On The Eve of Seventeen, Under The Moon’s Glow _

_ Comes the Wind To Steal the Breath, From the Maiden’s Throat _

_ The Final Toll of the Bell, Once Rung Means the End _

_ And the Birth Of One New, It Begins Again _

Every child had the curse memorized from a young age. Someone was always marked; the baker’s daughter, the farmer’s cousin, the schoolboy’s sister. There had never been a moment when there wasn’t someone within their village marked with the curse. Seventeen years the girl had with her family before she was taken in the night.

Everyone in the village had been affected. Some families more often than others, while some had their names erased from the books because of their only child being snatched away. The curse did not discriminate between girls. From the wealthiest daughter of the Nobles to the poorest girl on the streets. All of them were targets.

In the year of Justin Oluransi’s fourth summer, his parents were blessed with a third child. She was beautiful; with skin kissed by the sun and soft hair atop her head, brown eyes that would put a doe’s to shame. She was a sight to behold. Her parents were proud to have her, even when they found the Mark upon their child, an ugly little thing, discoloring her beautiful skin and letting anyone that gazed upon it know that she was next for the curse.

“We will love her the same,” her father whispered, even when the doctor informed the village that the new Marked child had been born, when their fellow villagers left carnations upon their door as a show of remembrance for a soul not yet departed. They would love her fiercely, and spend the time they had with her wisely, and Oluwadamilola, Dami, became her name, and she was born into the kind house of Oluransi.

Smart, quick-witted, kind girl was she, from such a young age. A perfect vision for the curse’s needs to stay alive. She was beautiful and fiery, an ember not to be burned out by any weak attempt to douse her.

In the year of Justin Oluransi’s fourteenth summer, he witnessed her dim.

It was the year of Dami’s tenth summer. She was growing into a fine young lady, and her time was running short. She had only seven years left with her family and her parents were required to tell her the truth. Justin stood with his older sister and mother and father as they sat his younger sister down to tell her the fate set out for her.

“You know the story,” his father said, “Of the young woman killed by her own mother, a wicked witch who had taken her own child’s life?”

“Yes, papa,” his sister responded, ever obedient, ever listening.

“You know that there is a girl, every seventeen years, who has her life unfairly taken?”

“Yes papa.”

“Then I am afraid to tell you. Angry to do so. Terrified to have to.” And Justin had never seen his father, a man that commanded respect from all those around him, hesitate to tell his young daughter the truth. “But I must. I must tell you, that you are chosen. Marked to- to-”

“To die,” Dami finished for him, and tears brimmed in her pretty eyes, and her lip quivered, and she clung to her mother and father tightly, and she understood.

So young, but she understood.

“Dami,” her mother whispered, pushing thick, dark curls back from her beautiful daughter’s face, “You are our Sunshine. We do not choose this for you.”

“I know, mama,” Dami cried, sobbed, whimpered. “I love you.”

Justin had never again seen his younger sister so vulnerable. She spent the next few years as alive as she could be, with her family. The curse would run its course when the time came, but she  _ had _ time until then. It would not take her a moment before. So strong, Dami was. Justin hardly ever saw her cry. He knew Dami had to be strong, to prove that the curse didn’t rule her life like it had others. She was still young, and would act as such.

Twas the night of her sixteenth day of birth that Justin saw her at her weakest.

“I want to live,” she sobbed into his chest, because Justin was the only one awake. He was the only one that had heard her quiet cries, the only one to pull her into his arms and hang on. If he had it his way, he would never let go.

“I want to have a family. I want to grow old.” Dami whispered, clinging to her brother. Justin could only let her. He had no control; this was her destiny. All were born to eventually die, but some died so much younger compared to others. Justin would likely live into his early hundreds but his sister? She would never make it to eighteen.

Not unless he did something about it.

It was that night that steeled Justin’s resolve to find a way to break the curse that tormented their village. He was determined to save his sister’s life, even if the journey to do so may end his own. She deserved to live and be free. Justin would not give up until she could be.

It led him to his current day, just shy of three months before his sister’s birthday. A strange man, younger than Justin, certainly, took him through the woods to find the only person that could break the curse that plagued his younger sister.

Justin thought back to how he found himself here, to the people he had spoken to beforehand…

~//~

“Adam, she’s getting worse every day,” Justin lamented to his oldest friend.

Adam of the Birkholtz House tipped his cup of mead back, drinking deeply from his mug. He was of the fifth generation of the Birkholtz house. He, like others, knew of the curse. His family had been affected by it as well, two generations back. His grandmother’s older sister had been taken by it.

“You’re trying to do the impossible, Justin,” Adam sighed when he had finally sat his mug down. They had been meeting to discuss what to do about Justin’s sister for the last few weeks. Adam had been very interested in helping, up until their window of time started closing rather rapidly. It seemed now that he wanted to step down.

“Dami is our pride and joy, you love her like a sister too!”

Adam flinched at the words, because they were completely true. Anyone who was close to the Oluransi House knew of Dami’s light and understood the joy she brought to the world. Her death would be heavy on the village.

“I know you don’t want her to die, but this magic? It’s too old, too powerful. It could’ve been broken when it first started appearing but now?” Adam shook his head. “Only a witch could break this curse.”

“You know a witch,” Justin pointed out.

“Eric Bittle? He’s… I don’t know, brother. Eric’s a good guy but I’m not sure he has the power to break a curse like this.”

“It doesn’t hurt to try.”

Adam had to give Justin that. There was no harm in trying. The worse that could happen was that this Eric Bittle wouldn’t be able to lift the curse. It would not be news to Justin; he was used to dealing with disappointment when it came to the matter of the curse.

“Alright, brother. I’ll tell you where you need to go.”

Justin headed South, toward the deserts, where it became hotter the further he went. He would not be entering the deserts; he would only be coming close enough to find the small village of Madison. There, he would find the Witch Baker, Eric Bittle. Adam had told him about the Baker Witch long ago, when they were younger. A prodigy among witches apparently, able to wield spells better than most.

He tried not to let his hopes get too high, but he knew it was unavoidable when faced with the prospect of being able to help his sister. The Witch Baker could probably cook up a spell that would be able to save Justin’s sister and any girls thereafter, so that no family in his village would have to deal with the curse ever again. Their daughters could grow old in peace and would never have to worry again.

So Justin trekked. He walked for a week at least, to see the Witch Baker, and to find out if the curse could be lifted.

The large town of Madison was not easy to navigate.

He was clearly different from all the others in the town and received many dirty looks. Justin figured it was because he came from further north and still dressed as such; after all, these were the only clothes he had! Surely these people understood that he had not the money to buy more clothing when he would not need them when he returned home. However, Justin soon found out that it was not his clothes that made those of Madison look at him strangely, but the color of his skin.

Refused service at the inn he found, Justin wandered the town until his nose caught the scent of fresh bread. He followed it until he came to a small bakery he had not seen before on his first pass through. It was cute and quaint, something homely he could find himself getting lost in. Justin stepped inside and was enveloped in the smells that wafted about. It did not take long to find the baker within.

“Well, hi there!” the small man smiled when his eyes landed upon Justin. He stood with a much taller man, the two of them having been talking about something or other. “You must be Justin.”

“How do you know my name?” Justin asked, shocked and surprised.

“Adam told me all about you on his last visit. I had a feeling I would be seeing you,” the accented words the baker spoke led Justin to use his context clues.

“You’re the Witch Baker?” he asked.

“If you need an instant stamina cookie or a mood changing cake, Bittle’s your guy for it,” the taller man smiled. His easy blue eyes never seemed to stray from the baker, who blushed and slapped at the tall man’s arms.

“You stop that, Jack Zimmermann,” he sighed, before turning to Justin again.

“What do you need from me?”

Justin knew that this was an opportunity he had been waiting for, and when he was prompted to speak, he spoke. He told the story of the curse that trapped his town and of his own sister, strong and beautiful but terribly afraid to die. He talked about Adam’s own family and he talked about the Witch that had doomed them. The words wouldn’t stop when they began flowing.

By the time Justin had finished telling his tale, the baker looked sad and remorseful. The taller man had stepped closer and wrapped an arm around him.

“I’m so sorry this has happened to your village for so long,” the baker sniffed, tears in his large brown eyes. “And I’m even more sorry that I can’t help you.”

Justin felt his face fall a bit, feeling that his hope had been all but crushed. He knew that this was the worst case scenario, and it pushed him right back to square one. All this way just to find out that the Witch Baker couldn’t help him. What would he say when he went home?

“But, I know of a Witch who likely can. She’s a powerful one, older than me I’m sure. She’s of the Duan clan.”

Duan, Duan, where had Justin heard that name before? He knew he had to have seen it somewhere.

“Can you contact her from here?” he asked. He knew witches had their own ways to contact each other. Justin just hoped the Witch Baker could help him contact the Witch Duan.

“Yes, honey, I can.” The Witch Baker waved Justin to the back of his modest shop, where a door led to the first Witch’s den Justin had ever seen. It was nothing like the stories he had heard; it was cozy and soft and inviting, much like the Witch Baker himself. The large man followed after them, keeping close.

“You are very brave,” the large man said to Justin. “I lost a friend to terrible curse. He was a hopeless case even before it took his life.”

Ah, he could empathize. “It really is something terrible.”

The large man nodded. “Curses… they can consume. The wearer either chooses to succumb to it or fight against it. My friend was practically eaten alive by it. Your sister stands a better chance.”

Justin knew they were meant to be words of encouragement, but they made him imagine a moment when his sister didn’t resist the curse that tried to lay claim to her. Dami fought against it  _ every single day _ of her life, and managed to come out stronger every time. He could only imagine what the large man’s friend had been like before his death.

“Here,” the Witch Baker said as they arrived at a large, bubbling pot. “I should still have some of the essence she left with me…”

A few drops from a tiny vial into the pot and it started to swirl, faster and faster and making Justin dizzy.

“First calls do that to people,” the large man chuckled as he placed a hand on Justin’s shoulder.

“Do witches do this all the time?” Justin questioned, when he had to force his eyes away because he could no longer look. The Witch Baker didn’t even flinch.

“Some do. I know Bits prefers the cauldron to ravens.”

“The ravens can be unreliable, Jack, I’ve told you this,” the Witch Baker piped in, but he was still completely focused on the cauldron.

“Unreliable. Sure, Bittle, if unreliable means you don’t trust them.”

“Of course I don’t. They’re unreliable!”

The large man shook his head. Justin observed their interactions and found that they were most like a married couple. Their banter was so easy, but their smiles open. None of the words were said with any malice. They genuinely cared for one another. Justin wondered if he would ever have that some day with someone. Being able to speak so easily and smile so happily. He wanted that for himself. He wanted that for his sister.

“Oh! It’s finally clearing up. She must have only just gotten somewhere she could see us,” the Witch Baker announced. Justin looked back into the pot; the once cloudy water was beginning to clear. Justin could see the image of a woman come into view, someone who he found himself to be very familiar with. He had not seen her in a matter of years, but he knew who she was the moment he laid eyes on her.

“Larissa Duan!” Justin gasped.

“Hey, Justin Oluransi!” her voice came through clearly, amazing Justin. This kind of communication was astonishing, and if he couldn’t tell from the scenery behind her that she was somewhere far away he would have thought she was just beneath the surface of the water.

“How are you? It’s been, what, four or five years?” Larissa asked.

“Only about three and a half,” Justin laughed. He was so glad to see someone he was familiar with. Had he known that the Witch Baker would call Larissa in the past, he would have asked her while she was in his village to lift the curse on his sister. If only he had known.

“How’s Dami?”

Larissa’s sudden question completely caught Justin unawares, and his expression fell immediately.

“She isn’t doing well, is she?” Larissa’s own smile fell away, too.

“She isn’t. The curse, it’s- it’s got a really tight hold on her, now more than ever. We need to lift it-  _ you _ can lift it, can’t you?” Justin found his hope renewing. The Witch Baker had recommended Larissa Duan himself, surely she could do something.

“I can,” Larissa admitted. Justin, though, knew there was something lingering behind her words.

“But…?”

“But I’m too far West to be able to help you. The trip would take too long and by the time I got there it would be too late. I’m sorry, Justin.”

Crushed like a small flower beneath a large boot. Justin began to think there was nothing he could do for his sister but return home and stay by her side until she died. He hated the idea of being complacent in her death; Dami didn’t deserve to die and neither did anymore girls. His quest couldn’t end here. It just couldn’t.

Larissa seemed to see the determination in Justin’s eyes from the other side of the cauldron, wherever she was.

“I know someone there who can do it, though,” were the words Justin heard, suddenly, from Larissa’s end.

“Larissa, you aren’t talking about the Witch Nurse, are you?” The Witch Baker chimed in, sounding a bit worried but at the same time awed.

“I am. The Witch Nurse can lift that curse from your sister, Justin. If you’re at Eric’s bakery, then all you need to do is head Northeast. Find the Lumberjack of the Mill, who protects the Witch Nurse,” Larissa instructed. “I know it’s hard, man, but your sister is a good person. You’re doing the right thing.”

Justin took the instructions down and nodded.

“What are you doing so far West, anyway?” he asked. Larissa looked away, bringing a hand up to clutch at the wolf pelt that covered her shoulders.

“Some of us are chasing  _ demons  _ trapped under curses, my friend. We help who we can,” she sighed. Justin saw it in her eyes and the set of her shoulders; lost in her thoughts but weary all the same. He knew the demon she was following after must have been someone she had known, but he did not press further. He wouldn’t bring up bad memories for her if he didn’t have to.

“Thank you for all your help, Larissa. I’ll tell Dami you were a big part of this too,” Justin smiled. Larissa blinked out of her brief stupor and gave Justin a thumbs up.

“Tell her happy birthday for me when she turns seventeen.”

The image rippled away after Justin had said his goodbye. The Witch Baker took a step back and fell into a chair, eyes wide in disbelief.

“The Witch Nurse. You’re actually gonna get to meet him,” awestruck, Justin could tell.

“Do people not meet him often?” Justin frowned.

“Almost never! I have to pack you a bag. Take some of my sweets with you, won’t you? I’d love for him to try some!”

The Witch Baker scrambled up to get to work, and as he did so many of the stationary items in his den started moving about, his magic keeping them going as he started on whatever task he was fixated upon. Justin watched him go to work while the large man simply stepped out of the way, cleaning up as best he could as the Witch Baker made an assortment of treats.

A pie flew by Justin, smelling wonderful, and a batch of cookies went the other way. The smells were amazing, and Justin wished he could stay to sample all the treats before him. But he was a man on a mission to save his sister, and couldn’t stay for long.

“I should probably leave.”

The Witch Baker paused in his actions, a bowl in his arms and spoon poised to stir. He looked over at the large man and then shook his head.

“Not yet. Stay the night, Justin, really. It’s a long ways back and I don’t want you to go when it’s still so dangerous out,” the Witch Baker said.

Justin considered it; he could leave now and be alone on the road or he could stay a bit longer, refill his rations. Head north on a full belly.

“Well, if you insist…”

The night was filled with good cheer and drinks. The food was excellent, Eric (that was the Witch Baker’s name, if you recall, as Justin did as the evening progressed) had outdone himself since he and Jack (the Witch Baker’s  _ husband _ !) hadn’t had guests in a long time.

When he finally slept, within the den of a kind Witch who ensured he was neither too hot nor too cold, Justin danced amongst the clouds in his dreams, his sister’s smile upon him and the prospect of the future bright. He saw her grow up and he saw her grow old, and his village never again worried for the lives of the girls that lived within it.

He enjoyed it while he could.

In the morning, before the sun had fully risen, Justin set off again to head Northeast in search of the Witch Nurse at the behest of the Witch Duan. He thought on her words, about demons that are trapped beneath their curses. He was lucky that his sister had not let the curse be the guiding point of her life. She had chosen to be more than what the curse dictated, putting her above the curse itself and the Witch that had forced it upon her.

Justin thanked his stars that he had a sister like Dami. His older sister Ife had not been home in a long time, seeking out things of comfort for Dami in her last days. Where his family had accepted Dami’s death, Justin had rejected the idea of it. He remembered what he had said to his mother and father when he set off as well.

“She doesn’t deserve this,” Justin had whispered, though the house was already silent from his announcement to leave. He may as well have been shouting it; the words were still too loud in the room. “I won’t sit by while it takes her.”

“This is destiny, Justin, you cannot change it!” his father had exclaimed. “Do you think we want her to go? Do you think we want her to leave us?”

“Then why are we letting it happen? Why don’t we find someone who can break the curse?”

“Because there is nobody that can!”

And the house was silent again. And Justin didn’t believe that one bit.

“If a curse can be placed, it can be lifted. Someone can do it.” He had slung his bag over his shoulder, and stepped out the door. “And I  _ will  _ find whoever it is.”

Dami had caught up with him before he reached the town entrance. She stopped him and pulled at his arm and looked him in his eye.

And she said, “Don’t miss my birthday.”

Because if there was one thing Dami had, it was faith in her brother and his abilities, and any hope he had that her curse could be broken, she had it too. Justin kissed her forehead and pushed her hair back from her eyes.

“I wouldn’t for the world.”

And even when his legs would threaten to fail him, Justin would do everything to return, and see her through her birthday, even with the slightest chance that Dami would not.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have chapters 2 and 3 finished but I won't post them before I've made a sizeable dent in chapter 4 because I'd hate to leave you guys on read for too long.


	2. The Brother's Dilemma

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Searching for the one that can break his sister's curse, Justin meets the Lumberjack and the Guardian...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 2!!!! So I'm posting chapter two now even though I haven't finished chapter four. Just kind of. Bear with me, folks.

Nestled deep within a bed, a witch slept. In his dreams, he found himself visited by a prince that danced with him. The prince was tall and handsome, with eyes the color of freshly turned soil and skin dark and lovely. They danced for what felt like days. Decades? The slumbering witch did not know. He did not know why the prince had chosen him, when he was so much less extraordinary.

But the prince did not care. He did not see the witch as any less for not coming from a noble bloodline. He did not think less of the witch just because he hadn’t been brought up in the same fashion. Their differences were what made them unique, after all.

Even when the witch admitted to being a witch, someone who could cast a spell on the prince and make him fall in love, the prince continued to gaze at him as if he had hung the moon. The witch did not think he deserved such a loving look, not when he was such a simple sorcerer that could hardly do more than healing magic.

“I could force you to fall in love with me,” the witch said, suddenly. The prince looked surprised, but then he chuckled.

“You wouldn’t force me,” he stated.

“I’m afraid you might be wrong,” the witch replied. He was so desperate to love, to be loved, to be needed. Maybe he would force the prince.

Did he need to?

“I’m afraid―”

“You can be afraid,” the prince cut in. The look in his eyes was so sincere, so meaningful and honest that the witch was struck. Beneath his ribs, in his heart, he felt an arrow pierce him, Cupid’s bow string singing a soft melody after striking the witch through.

“But then you must be brave.”

The witch looked up at the prince, who smiled with all the radiance of the sun. There truly was no one else but them. There was no one who could part them, no one who could take the prince away from the witch. Here, they were together, dancing for an eternity. They were one and they were happy.

Little did the witch know, the prince was just as afraid. Not because of the witch, no. But because he did not want the truth to be known. Because he did not want the witch to know that he had originally sought him out for his own selfish reasons, only to fall in love with someone who was more human than what the legends said of him.

He did not want the witch to know that he had been completely in love from their very first moment together, before their dancing. He did not want the witch to know that he would bring the entire world to the witch if it was asked of him.

There were many things the witch couldn’t know. Even within his own dreams, he could not know these things.

Waking proved difficult, but his home creaked and moaned, begging for his attention. There was a guest at the door…

~//~

The angry chopping caught Justin’s attention first. It was loud and violent; not at all what Justin was used to hearing when someone was gathering wood in the forest. After two days on the road with little sign of any other person, Justin was glad that there was someone up ahead. He quickened his pace, mind thinking back to the pies in his basket, remembering that Eric had said they would not keep for too long even with the enchantments on them.

“Excuse me! Hey!” Justin shouted, waving his hands. The person stopped in their chopping, looking over. Justin was close enough to see the man’s eyes; a bright, abnormal, orange color, complimentary to his red hair.

“Who are you?” the man grunted, axe held in both hands tightly. “What are you doing here?”

“Whoa, there, my friend, chill out a bit, eh?” Justin held up his hands in an almost placating gesture. That seemed to make the redhead angrier.

“Do not tell me to ‘chill!’ You sound just like  _ him _ .” The snarl with which the redhead said the words made Justin flinch back, eyes going to the axe in the redhead’s hands.

“I sound like―who?”

“Fucking Nurse!”

The shout was followed by the redhead bringing the axe down on a particularly unlucky tree. Though already fallen, the anger behind the action was nonetheless powerful, and the tree was split in two through brute force alone. Justin thought about turning and walking away, but then his mind caught up to the angry man’s words.

Nurse… Nurse. Could this man be the Lumberjack that guarded the Witch Nurse that Larissa had spoke of? He fit the bill; he chopped wood and seemed to know  _ someone _ with Nurse in their name. He only hoped he was right, otherwise he might end up on the other side of that chopping axe.

He started, “Are you the lumberjack―”

“I’m  _ a _ lumberjack,” the man cut in.

“―that protects the Witch Nurse?”

The angry man grew quiet, the look in his eyes changing into something else, something unreadable. Justin didn’t know what about his question had sparked the sudden shift, but he knew for certain now that this angry man was indeed the Lumberjack, for no other would become so gated upon being asked a question such as that.

“Why do you want to know?” The fierce look Justin received from the Lumberjack would have been enough to send a lesser man running. Paired with the axe, it might have been anyone else’s undoing. But Justin held firm and strong. He had his sister to save.

“I have to ask something of him,” he replied.

“What do you need?”

Justin did not gain anything by lying.

“My sister is cursed. I need to find someone who can break it. Lar- the Witch Duan sent me to find the Witch Nurse,” he said truthfully.

The Lumberjack stared him down, his gaze intense as if he were trying to find something within Justin’s eyes that spoke of lies. Justin stood his ground, however, gazing back just as fiercely because his sister needed him to be unwavering.

“What do you have in return?” It was a final question, Justin could tell, and his shoulders sagged just a bit.

“I’ve no money,” he admitted, “Only my supplies and these pastries the Witch Baker sent with me, which I can’t give as my own offering.”

“You really expect the Witch Nurse to lift a curse for free?” The Lumberjack looked unamused.

“I expect him to hear me out. If he can help me, that would be amazing. If not, I’ll move on and find someone else that can.”

The Lumberjack looked stunned now, the answer obviously not one he had been expecting. A small smile crossed his lips, briefly, before the deep scowl from before returned. The Lumberjack turned around and gathered up the wood he had chopped, able to carry much more than any mortal man should have been able to.

“Follow me. I cannot take you to the Witch Nurse myself but I can take you to the person who can.” He threw over his shoulder, “William. You are…?”

“Justin.”

The Lumberjack―William―nodded as he began to lead the way out of the woods.

They walked for a long time; primarily in silence. It was easy for Justin to tell that William didn’t talk much outside of his friends. An explosive temper but a quiet guy; Justin could respect that he supposed. Although maybe his silence had to do with the fact that he occasionally mumbled about “stupid rituals” and “dumb tasks.”

They continued without words for a long time. Justin couldn’t really think of anything to say anyway; he had already told William of his intentions.

“Through here.” William guided them through an archway. It was large and looming, but clearly made by someone with woodland magicks. He didn’t recognize any of the characters carved into the archway, but instead assumed it was meant as some form of protection spell.

William walked exactly twenty paces past the archway before stopping abruptly before a pond Justin had not seen before.

“Will!” An excited voice called from beyond the pond. Justin did not remember seeing a person standing there before. He looked around the area, wondering if others would suddenly pop out as well, and then turned back to see if the person was still there. When he turned his head, he found the person on the same side of the pond as he and William.

“Chris,” William bowed his head and Justin recognized it as a motion of respect. The man―Chris―copied the motion, though not as deeply and then looked over at Justin. Justin didn’t know if he should bow as well. He opted for a nod of his head, a show of respect but nothing as formal as William’s actions.

“Hello! You must be Justin, Will told me about you!” Chris said, his smile wide and just a bit contagious.

“He told you―?” Justin had not heard them speak. He looked at William, who seemed mildly annoyed still.

“He wants to see Nursey,” he cut in. The look in Chris’ eyes changed; shifting into something more attentive. His smile did not waver.

“Thank you for bringing him here, Will,” Chris said. William nodded his head and then shifted a bit on his feet. Justin noticed the sudden way William was antsy; the way his eyes shifted from anger to concern. And then to confusion, a question obviously burning in his throat.

“When will―”

“Peace, Will. Derek will tell you your next task soon. Don’t stress yourself out over it. Go see your family.” Chris placed a hand on William’s shoulder. William stared at him and then sighed, nodding.

“Yeah. Yeah, okay. I’ll see you and Derek for my next task.”

With that, William, the Lumberjack of the Mill, hoisted his firewood higher and headed through the archway. Within moments a deep fog obscured his visage and Justin was left alone with Chris. Chris seemed enthused to have a visitor.

“Come on! We have to move quickly if we’re going to get to Nursey’s home,” Chris gestured for Justin to follow him. He was moving in the direction of the pond―

―Which was no longer a pond, but a grassy clearing now. Justin found himself in awe. He was absolutely  _ positive _ there had been a pond there moments ago. He looked up at Chris, who was still smiling of course, questions on his lips. Chris, however, simply shook his head and motioned for Justin to follow him once again.

“It has been a long time since someone wanted to visit Nursey! And even longer since it was someone who got Will’s seal of approval. Everyone goes through him first before they can see me. I’m the second test, almost,” Chris explained, talking a lot. Justin tried to follow but found it a bit hard in some places, not entirely understanding the words Chris spoke at times.

But Chris’ words, though confusing, were a comfort of sorts. He didn’t need to fill the silence with his own words because Chris did that. He spoke; easily and openly, without any sort of regret. His trust in Justin was so immediate; Chris knew that Justin bore no ill intent and would not hurt the Witch Nurse.

“How did you come by the Witch Nurse?” Justin finally asked, curiosity getting the better of him.

Chris grew quiet. The air around them seemed to have shifted a bit and Justin found himself feeling a bit uneasy. The fog that had enveloped William was starting to close in around them as well. Justin wasn’t sure where it had started coming from when moments ago the forest was clear. But now the fog clung around them like a thick blanket, making it hard to see where they were going and where they had come from.

Justin knew that he had little choice but to keep following Chris, even if he had grown uncomfortable. He would be lost to the forest if he did otherwise.

“We’re very old friends,” Chris said at last, his voice even but the tone holding a deeper meaning Justin could not find. It wasn’t his business to pry, but his curiosity easily got the best of him.

“Are you his only friend?” Justin couldn’t help but ask, too curious to leave well enough alone.

“Well, no,” Chris hummed. “Will is his friend. Sort of. When they aren’t fighting.”

Chris smiled again, glancing back at Justin. It was enough to put Justin’s heart completely at ease, but he didn’t know why he had calmed down so easily with a simple look.

“And Will’s town loves him. He keeps a lot of the children healthy.” Chris looked ahead again. He seemed to know his way through the fog easily, and even told Justin to watch his step moments before he nearly tripped over an exposed tree root. Justin figured Chris was extremely familiar with these woods. He had no idea how close to the truth he was.

“What’s your favourite memory of your sister?” Chris asked suddenly.

Justin was stunned for a moment, before remembering that Chris had already mentioned “speaking” to William about him. He realized he didn’t know how to answer.

“I―I don’t know,” he replied. Chris frowned.

“Well, you’ve gotta have at least one! Any of them, what do you remember?” Chris turned to Justin and stepped into his space, making Justin stumble back and fall. The ground beneath him was soft grass as opposed to the hard packed dirt they had been walking on before. Chris had anticipated this.

Justin tried to recall any of the better memories he had with Dami, wracking his brain a bit. He couldn’t really pinpoint an exact favourite; every moment he spent with his sister was precious to him.

“I couldn’t say I have a favourite,” he admitted. “Every moment I spend with her is too good.”

“Then why did you leave her?”

That was another question Justin didn’t entirely know how to answer. Well, no, that was a lie. Justin knew the answer to it, but lately he had been feeling like he didn’t know the  _ real _ answer to that question. Why had he left home? Why had he stepped out of his front door, looked back exactly once, and then pushed forward? Was it really to save his sister? Was it because he couldn’t stand the thought of seeing her grow weaker with every passing day?

Was it because he wanted to see the world a bit more and experience what Dami might never be able to?

Chris watched the conflict happen in Justin’s eyes, a small smile playing on his lips. “Maybe Derek can help you figure it out.”

A hand was held out for him to take and Justin took it, coming to his feet. He breathed a sigh and then managed a smile at Chris.

“I appreciate you taking me to see the Witch Nurse,” he said.

“It’s not any trouble!” Chris turned around again. “And I’m not technically taking you to  _ him _ . Just to the door.”

As soon as Chris said the words, a door appeared through the fog, along with an entire cottage. Justin was in awe upon seeing it; where had it even come from? Just seconds ago there was only fog all around and nothing ahead of them, but the moment Chris said the word “door” it had appeared before them, looming and a bit daunting.

“I cannot open that door for you,” Chris said, honestly. He looked a little worried now. They had only been talking to each other for a few minutes but Chris already felt like they were friends. In another life, they were. “It will open if you are worthy of seeing my friend. I think you are, personally, but that’s not for me to decide.”

Justin swallowed. What if he wasn’t worthy? What if, through all of this, he made it to the end of his journey and it was decided that he wasn’t good enough to receive help from the Witch Nurse, the only person this side of the world that could lift the curse on his sister?

It was such a terrifying prospect. Would he be allowed to go back home? What would his parents say, aside from bittersweet “I told you so” and “there was never a way to lift the curse”?

His hand hovered above the doorknob when something from the back of his mind rushed forth, pushing to the very front and replaying something from when he was younger.

When he was only thirteen, and Dami was nine. An adventurous child she had been, wandering out in the woods whenever it suited her, the year before she would be told the truth about the mark on her body. Justin was always tasked with watching her. As her older brother, he was supposed to be her protector.

Dami was playing in the woods when she found a young deer, its leg badly injured. Justin had heard her call for his help. Together, the two of them took the deer back to their home for their mother to look over. After its leg was wrapped and the wound in it cleaned, Justin had helped Dami take it back into the woods.

There, a large stag stood, waiting almost. Justin had been afraid of it, he had to admit. It’s antlers were huge and could likely pierce even the thickest of man, spearing him through completely. But Dami, his baby sister, she had not flinched as she led the baby deer to the large animal. The fawn walked on wobbly legs, barely able to do so on it’s own without Dami there to guide it. She had bowed her head to the large deer as it helped its young head deeper into the forest. Before leaving, the stag turned and knelt low, before continuing on without a glance back.

They had not known it, but it was the Spirit of the Forest that had come for its child upon finding out it was injured. Dami had unwittingly received the Spirit’s blessing after ensuring the safety of its young and helping it get back to its family. At only nine years old she had a gift that none could entirely understand; a way with animals like none had ever seen before.

That night, when Justin tucked her into bed because their mother and father were too tired to do so, Justin kissed Dami’s forehead and thanked her for being brave when he could not.

“You could have,” Dami stated, her tone so matter of fact that it surprised Justin just a bit.

“I don’t think so,” Justin smiled, ensuring her comfort. He went to stand, but Dami caught his hand in hers.

“Everyone can be brave, big brother.”

“Not me. I’m too scared.” His laugh didn’t quite reach his eyes.

Dami gave him a soft smile. “Be afraid. Then, be brave.”

Nine years old and Dami understood the world better than most men wizened through the years. The words had stuck with Justin for the rest of his life. Every day he reminded himself to be afraid and to then be brave, because Dami could do it, and so could he.

The memory faded back into the recesses of Justin’s mind, but it brought forth the question Chris had asked earlier. Why had he left his sister?

“So I could be brave,” Justin said, just loud enough for Chris to hear. Chris had been confused as to why Justin hadn’t tried to open the door just yet. He didn’t immediately know what Justin was talking about either.

“I was tired of being afraid. So I had to be brave.” Justin glanced back at Chris and managed a smile. “That’s why I left.”

It dawned on Chris what Justin was saying. This was the first time anyone had ever answered his question with an answer like that. Most had selfish answers hidden beneath fake chivalry. Fame, money, false love. But there was nothing fake about Justin of the House of Oluransi. He stepped out of the comfort of his home and away from his dying sister so that he could be brave when she could not. Justin could have stayed with her in her last days and watched her die, but instead he chose to be away from her to try to help her live.

It was the bravest thing he could think to do.

“You know, I was worried the door wouldn’t open for a second,” Chris hummed, “But now? I’m sure it will.”

Justin appreciated the words of encouragement. He turned back to the door, stared at the grooves in it for a bit and wondered if he actually had the guts to turn the knob and open it. He took a deep breath and then grasped the knob in hand.

Slowly, he turned it, and pushed…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thoughts? Commentary? Moments you really liked?


	3. The Witch's Offer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And at last, our hero sees the light at the end of the tunnel, but there is a catch to get there...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HI I HAVENT FINISHED CHAPTER 4 BUT IM TIRED OF HOLDING ONTO CHAPTER 3

...and the door opened.

~//~

Once upon a time, there was a kingdom overflowing with life. Within this kingdom lived a happy family consisting of a mother and father and two children, a young girl and a younger boy. They were happy children that loved to laugh and play and hop and skip and jump to their hearts’ content. The younger boy’s sister would often read him stories of princes and dragons and witches and true love and happy endings, something the boy wanted very much for himself and his sister.

One day, the father left with the King’s Royal Guard. He promised his wife and children that he would return, that a war would be won when he did so. The children did not understand war, not like their mother did, but they wept when she did when the father had to leave.

Months passed. The young girl and her younger brother still played. They still laughed and skipped and jumped, but there was always a longing in their hearts for their father. They knew he had to fight for their kingdom, and that one day he would return for them. He had promised he would, after all. He wrote them letters all the time and sent them toys to play with and parcels for their mother with wine from exotic lands in them.

Years passed. The young girl and younger boy were not so young anymore, having grown tall and fair. The young girl was a lovely sight to behold, a beauty like no other, fairest in all the kingdom. The younger boy had grown to be handsome and kind, a sweet young lad with an affinity for poetry. They were known by the kingdom as two of the most beautiful and smart suitors that anyone had ever seen. It made them valuable. It made them vulnerable.

When soldiers returned after years of fighting in a war (the two now understood war, what it meant, and its consequences) with news of their father’s death, the young lady and younger lad were devastated, though not much more than their mother. She was so grief stricken that she sought any way to bring her beloved husband back. While mourning her husband’s death, an old witch approached her, one not unlike a certain witch that would, centuries later, curse an entire village.

The witch offered a way for the mother to be reunited with her husband. The mother, overcome with grief, ignored her children’s pleas and agreed to anything. The witch cast her fatal spell and the mother was reunited with her husband in death. Her children, the fair young lady and the kind younger lad, were shocked to see their mother dead before them as well. The witch then turned to the young lady, and cast another spell.

_ In death, like sleep, close to the Earth you will be, _

_ Beneath the ground, you will slumber, and one day see, _

_ Your beauty and your grace, shall now be your end, _

_ Down under, where no one will hear you, is where I send! _

The lad, realizing the witch was cursing his sister, intervened quickly, and the witch came face to face with another more powerful than she; the young lad had a magical ability innate and hidden, just waiting to be unlocked. As naturally as could be, he came up with a spell of his own to counter the witch’s.

_ Not death, but sleep, and the Earth is your bed, _

_ And with my words, you will see your shackles shed _

_ When you are ready, you will be given a shove, _

_ Awoken by something powerful, a one true love! _

It could hardly undo what needed to be undone, but it worked to counter a spell of death. He saw the ground open up and take his sister in a bed as she fell into sleep, something deep that he knew he could not awaken her from. He was young and inexperienced, and he had lost all the family he had left.

The witch that had tried to take his sister and had already claimed his mother fled in fear of his power. She stayed hidden from the searching kingdom by going north, and settling where the lad couldn’t find her. She was not finished with ruining lives, however…

The lad was alone now, his parents dead and his sister slumbering away below him. He had become an orphan overnight.

With time, the young lad mastered his power. He worked to become one of the greatest witches in the land, well known by many. The kingdom he had lived in withered and died, and in its stead a forest grew, surrounding his home. He would not leave the house; beneath it slept the only family he had left. He longed to see his sister again some day, and would do so when he learned how to break her curse.

When he was awake, he spent his moments thinking of how he could save her. He took apprentices and made them witches and oversaw a village full of children like he had been, young and happy.

But in his dreams, he danced with a prince and saw love. When he slept his own sleep, he envisioned someone that could take his pain away, someone that would love him and make him forget the life he led. He spun around and around to a melody he couldn’t place and gazed into eyes that held only love and affection, something raw and pure that couldn’t be replaced by anything.

The curse placed upon him was lifted by a kiss, something deep and loving, and in his dreams, he was really and truly happy.

Now, unbeknownst to him, his fantastical dream of happiness would one day be a reality. But before he can obtain this, he must first find something valuable to him, something he thought he had lost. Before he can have his own happy ending, the lad needed to help someone else have theirs.

~//~

Chris let out a small cheer of glee, happy to know that he was right and that Justin would receive the help he needed. He led the way into the home after the door opened, proud and excited. Justin was surprised to be able to get a look at the second Witch’s Den he had seen in the span of days. It wasn’t unlike Eric’s Witch Den, just as cozy but somehow even more welcoming. There were books stacked floor to ceiling in every part of the home, and blankets and what Justin assumed were potions and vials of liquids everywhere.

There was mild cursing coming from a backroom, telling of a person hidden behind one of the doors. Chris seemed to know his way around easily (or maybe he was using magic to move things out of his way) since he went toward the sound of cursing and produced another man, one that looked just a bit ethereal. Justin had never really been one for poetry; he didn’t write sonnets about a girl’s appearance or long free verse about a man’s body. It wasn’t his style.

But Justin looked at the Witch Nurse and saw- he saw-

He couldn’t entirely describe it. There was something so striking about the Witch’s appearance that Justin couldn’t really look at him and yet all he wanted to do was stare. When Justin wanted to look away, he found himself caught by green eyes, the kind of green Justin saw in the dark moss at the bottom of clear streams, when he ventured out into the forest. He remembered wanting to reach out and touch it, only to be reminded that the stream was deeper than it appeared.

Justin figured the Witch Nurse was much like the moss at the bottom of the streams: too deep to safely touch. If he tried, he would surely fall in and be swept away by the current. He had no idea how right he was.

“I thought I said not to bring anyone around for the next decade?” The Witch Nurse looked at Chris as he said this, who was still smiling.

“Justin has a problem only  _ you _ can solve, Derek,” Chris pointed out. “If you couldn’t, the door wouldn’t have opened.”

“That door is busted,” the Witch Nurse (Derek? Justin had never heard a name more ordinary. Well, aside from Eric, but he was learning a lot about witches) mumbled.

“The door is fine and I  _ know _ you want to help because it wouldn’t have opened otherwise!” The matter of fact tone in Chris’ voice led Justin to smile, just a bit, and Derek the Witch Nurse looked a little irritated but defeated.

“Alright, fine, I can help you,” he sighed.

“Great! I’ll make some tea,” Chris offered. Derek glanced up, frowning.

“No, it’s fine Chris, I can-”

“It’s alright.” Chris gave Derek a softer smile this time. “I brought tea. This is one of the fresher batches, but I think it’ll be good to serve to your guest.”

Derek stared at Chris a little longer before conceding with a sigh and a nod. “Yeah. Yeah, okay.” He trusted Chris to know what he was doing. Besides, when had he ever turned down Chris’ tea before?

Justin felt like he was intruding on something private when he watched their interaction, the way they looked at each other felt like more than just friendship. But Justin did not pry, though he wanted to. It was not his place to question the relationship between two witches. After all, he was an outsider looking in, something mortal in their immortal worlds. They would see him gone in years, mere moments for them. When the world ended, the witches would still be there, when Justin, and even Dami, were not.

It was a bit humbling, realizing his own mortality.

“I brought- pie. From the Witch Baker,” Justin blurted suddenly, breaking the moment. Derek the Witch looked over at him, and a small smile graced his handsome features.

“Thank you,” Derek said, and with a lift of his hand the bags on Justin’s back were pulled away. Justin watched in amazement as they settled on the floor and opened, the two pies Eric had made floating out and landing gently on the table. “We can eat them with the tea.”

“Which is right here,” Chris said cheerfully, setting down three cups. Justin had never seen tea made faster in his life. He knew, truly, that these two beings were simply otherworldly. Chris set down three plates as well, along with a knife. Derek picked the knife up to cut into the pies.

“So why are you here?”

Derek cut into the first dessert, plating the three slices. One was a bit bigger than the others. Derek took that one for himself, giving Chris a little grin when the other seemed a bit annoyed. Chris seemed to retaliate by cutting himself another slice, much to Derek’s mild chagrin. As soon as he thought them some sort of godlike creatures they displayed human qualities, a sight that really made Justin smile. He was mortal, but they had been at one point, too.

He noticed Derek watching him when he looked up from his tea cup, and he had barely taken a sip when he realized Derek had asked him a question.

“This is really good,” Justin said. It wasn’t the answer to the question asked of Justin but it made Derek smile, a small snort covered up by his own teacup. Chris practically beamed with happiness.

“I grow it myself!” he proclaimed, “More accurately, I introduced it to the forest and the forest took to it really well. I cannot  _ make _ it grow; the forest chooses that on its own.”

Justin didn’t have a response for that. He honestly hadn’t thought of a forest having a will of its own; it wasn’t something that seemed possible. Then again, his sister was cursed to die on her seventeenth birthday and he  _ had _ met a lumberjack with immense strength, a witch that could change the forest, and a witch that could apparently cure his sister. The impossible  _ was _ possible.

The question.

“I came here because…” Justin paused, his mind retreating back to his sister briefly. Before he had left she seemed fine, but he had been gone for weeks now. She was going into her final months and she would have taken ill.

An overwhelming anger filled Justin just then, something huge and ugly that made tears fill his eyes at the sheer raw power of the emotion. Why did this have to happen to  _ his _ sister? Why couldn’t it have been anyone else’s sister? Why did it have to be Dami, who was sweet and kind and courageous and brave? Why did it have to happen to  _ any _ of the girls in their village? Why had theirs been chosen by an evil witch that sought revenge?

He felt confusion and fear, the kind that really makes a man question everything he has ever worked for. Had he really thought it was a good idea to leave his sister alone like this? Had he really assumed it would be best to leave her when she was approaching her weakest state? What if he never saw her again?

Following the fear came despair, and regret. Justin knew he should never have left Dami. She  _ needed _ him by her side in her final days, her strong big brother who she taught to be brave, the only person that knew the weakness hiding deep within her. He shouldn’t have left, he shouldn’t have left, she shouldn’t be alone―

Derek watched the emotions pass over Justin. Out of the corner of his eye he looked at Chris, who was the vision of innocence, partaking in the pie offered to them by the Witch Baker. Derek knew that it was a ruse, and that the emotions that overwhelmed Justin were because Chris was coaxing them out.

A glance at Justin told Chris to dial back down and allow Justin’s emotions to come back to a normal level. Derek’s fork clinked against his plate, a quiet call telling Chris not to back off just yet. Derek wanted to see if this final test would break Justin; if this would be where they pulled the true meaning behind Justin’s quest from his lips.

Justin opened his mouth to speak.

“I came here because I―I love my sister,” Justin finally sobbed out. “I love her with every fiber of my being and I never,  _ ever _ , want to see her light dim. She deserves to live, more than anybody else I can think of. She deserves it.”

The despair and the regret had disappeared. Justin pushed the heels of his palms into his eyes, wiping away the tears. When he pulled his hands away, the fiercest determination Derek had ever seen in a mortal man’s eyes was present in Justin’s. Behind that determination was a love so bright and shining that Derek felt it rivaled his own passion for  _ his _ sister, and if anyone could invoke the emotions he felt for his own sibling within his heart, then they were worthy of having his help.

“Please, help her, I’ll give you anything. That curse needs to be broken―our town  _ needs _ to be free!”

A curse, a horrible, terrible, thing that could consume, and consume, and eat away at a person until there was nothing left of them but the ashes of what they used to be. Derek was so very familiar with curses.

Chris picked up his tea and took a long drink. As he did so, Justin felt his own emotions come back under his control. He wondered what had come over him; for such an outburst to happen was out of character for him. He supposed sitting before the one and only person that could possibly help his sister had caused his careful composure to break. Chris set his cup back down and gave him a smile.

Derek took a sip of his tea.

“What do you have to offer in return?” he inquired. It hurt his soul a bit to ask, but Derek could not offer his services without a fee. The law of the land was equivalent exchange; one cannot gain without first giving something in return. The curse would come with a high cost to lift, one that Derek was not sure Justin could offer him.

“I have no money and nothing of value, except for the love I’ve got for Dami,” Justin replied, honestly.

“Then if I name a suitable price, you will pay it?”

A pause.

“Yes. Anything.”

Derek set his teacup down on the table and looked to Chris. They seemed to have a whole conversation in just a short glance before Chris stood.

“If you need anything, just send a raven for me,” Chris said. He smiled at Justin. “Derek will take good care of you until it’s time.”

Without another word, Chris left the home. Justin watched the door open and close and then looked back at Derek, who took another bite of his pie.

“What does he mean by that?” he asked.

Derek looked Justin in the eye, as calm and serious as could be.

“He means until I find a price for you to pay, you are to remain here with me.”

Little did Justin know, there was already a price set, one that was possibly worth more than the curse itself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Questions? Comments? Concerns?? All will be revealed in due time but tell me what you thought!


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